New faces in the Overwatch League: Dallas Announces OGE; London Signs t1zi

Two new tank players joined the Overwatch League today, with the Dallas Fuel announcing the signing of Son "OGE" Min-Seok, while the London Spitfire welcomed Hwang “T1zi” Jang-Hyun to their line-up.

Now the 12th player signed by the Texan team, OGE was previously CONBOX’s main tank, and is expected to start playing in Stage 3, according to the organization on their official Twitter account. Following the announcement, fans started wondering on social channels if that means player Félix "xQc" Lengyel will be stepping down from the line-up, but nothing has been confirmed so far.

My take on this: the former teammate of Los Angeles Gladiators’ Choi "Asher" Joon-seong, OGE didn’t show particular outstanding performances during APEX Season 4. Now Dallas’ 4th tank player, is yet to be determined what he will bring to a team whose problems definitely don’t include individual skill.

Captain Jonathan "HarryHook" Tejedor Rua claimed yesterday that the entire team “has a different mindset,” clearly showing that communication still is the Fuel’s main concern. Therefore, it is worth asking how a relatively unknown Korean can do in order to have a big impact on struggling Dallas’ international roster.

Meanwhile, the London Spitfire announced the signing of T1zi, best known as the tank player for RunAway as they reached the finals of APEX Season 4, where they were defeated by GC Busan – who coincidently formed the core of the Spitfire today. This concludes a rather busy transfer week for the Stage 1 champions, which started with the announcement on Wednesday on their official Twitter account that head coach Lee "Bishop" Beom-joon left the team, which was taken by surprise by the fans and rest of the community alike, as Bishop was the mastermind behind the formation of the Spitfire’s roster.

“London Spitfire are today delighted to welcome Jang-Hyun “T1zi” Hwang to our roster as we continue to battle it out at the summit of the Overwatch League,” said the organization in a press release, with the player sharing these feelings, stating that “taking first place remains my goal, and I will do my best to achieve it in the Overwatch League with London Spitfire.”

On his personal Twitter, the player said that he will be arriving in the United States on March 20.

My take on this: unlike OCE’s signing, T1z1 joining London makes absolutely sense from a strategical point of view. Since trading away Baek “Fissure” Chan-hyung to the Los Angeles Gladiators at the start of Stage 2, the London Spitfire has been left only with one main tank player on their roster, star Hong “Gesture” Jae-hee. Therefore, it is clear that Fissure will serve as Gesture’s direct replacement, with the player himself stating that in the press release: “I intend to learn the specialties of Gesture, so I can strengthen my weak points and become the best player I can be.”

The choice for Fissure is also a correct one from my point of view, as his known aggressive playstyle should present the Spitfire with more tactical and strategical varieties, which can provide them the edge necessary in close encounters against the top teams of the league.

The London Spitfire start Week 3 tomorrow against the Boston Uprising, before facing off Fissure and the rest of the Los Angeles Gladiators on Saturday, whereas Dallas will try to recover from their loss yesterday to the San Francisco Shock on Saturday as well, when they will be matching forces with the Dallas Mayhem.

(Photos courtesy of Robert Paul / Blizzard Entertainment)

Disclaimer: The following article was written freely based on the author's opinion, and it may not necessarily represent Inven Global's editorial stance.